


So Darkness I Became

by phoenix_cry



Category: Warehouse 13
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-05-26
Updated: 2013-05-26
Packaged: 2017-12-13 00:59:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 18,362
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/818094
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phoenix_cry/pseuds/phoenix_cry
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Myka is keeping a secret, and not everybody is happy with that. Vampire!AU</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: I noticed that many people wanted to read more Bering and Wells vampire fic, so I decided to give it a shot. I hope it doesn’t disappoint too much. :) Also, I’d to give a big shoutout to starserenity for beta-reading this for me. Thank you! :D
> 
> (As I am currently in the process of moving my Bering and Wells fics here, you may have already read this on ff.net. Still, if you enjoyed reading it, feedback is always more than welcome!)

> And in the dark,  
>  I can hear your heartbeat, I try to find the sound,  
>  But then it stopped,  
>  And I was in the darkness,  
>  So darkness I became  
>  \- Florence and the Machine  
> 

  
**Chapter 1**

"Myka!" Pete hissed, as he watched his partner's curly head vanish into the wall of darkness in front of him. He winced, as the sound of his own voice seemed much too loud in the darkness, despite his attempt to be as quiet as possible. "Myka, I swear, if you don't come back here right now, I'll hide every pack of twizzlers in the house! Or I'll just eat them myself."  
  
Silence greeted him, and Pete scuffed his feet against the dirty concrete floor, debating whether to go after his partner or get backup. Steve and Claudia should still be outside the abandoned warehouse, if they did as they were told, for once.  
  
A noise jolted him out of his thoughts, just as he had made the decision to creep into the darkness after his partner. His stomach lurched, and goosebumps broke out on his arms and down his back, the feeling making him swallow hard. He could feel eyes watching him, the gaze so intense and so chilly, as if he had been standing in front of an open freezer. He suppressed the shiver that wanted to work its way down his body.  
  
Bracing the arm holding the tesla with his other hand, Pete carefully adjusted his stance and tensed himself for whatever it was that was lurking in the shadows. He prayed to whomever might be listening that Myka had not crossed paths with whatever it was, yet.  
  
"Pete!"  
  
The agent in question had to try very hard not to squeak in an unmanly fashion – he would never hear the end of it from Myka – when his partner seemed to materialize out of the darkness directly in front of him, after what seemed like ages, frowning at the tesla which was now aimed at her face. Pete blanched at the glare she sent him and hastily lowered his gun.  
  
"Mykes! Don't do that!" he complained.  
  
"Do what?"  
  
"That! Vanishing into thin air and then proceeding to scare the crap out of me!"  
  
"I didn't vanish!" she argued, quite loudly, which made him wince. "I was barely ten feet from you."  
  
"Well, I couldn't see you. In case you hadn't noticed, it's pitch-black back there! And you didn't answer." He knew he sounded like a petulant child that had lost sight of his mother in a supermarket for five seconds, but he didn't care.  
  
Myka apparently thought the same, if the look on her face was any indication. Shaking her head, she let out a long-suffering sigh. "How old are you, anyways?"  
  
"Hey!"  
  
Pete continued to pout, as they made their way back outside, which was not helping his case any, he knew.  
  
"Did you find something, then?" he asked at long last and received a shake of the head.  
  
"Nothing related to what we were looking for. Doesn't look like the artifact has been here at all."  
  
All of a sudden, the warning bells in the pit of his stomach were sounding again full force. He staggered slightly, getting a concerned glance from Myka. He forestalled any questions, when he just waved his hand vaguely in her direction. "Tripped over my own feet. You know how I get, when I haven't had any cookies in more than a couple of hours," he joked and hurried on, back out into the fading sunlight, back towards Claudia and Jinks, back towards the safety of the car.  
  
The bad feeling still lingered, no matter how much distance he put between himself and that warehouse.  
  
Myka, meanwhile, fell back slightly, needing the time to compose herself before joining the company of the others. She knew that Pete had felt a third presence, and he was not the only one, although he most likely did not know yet what to make of it. She had felt it the moment she had stepped into the abandoned building; felt the chill settle over her body like a cool and welcome breeze on a hot summer's day. The agent had to restrain herself not to hurry in the direction she knew the presence to be hiding at, but to follow protocol instead, making sure the room was clear.  
  
She had welcomed the easy way they had fallen back into their bantering when it was quite clear how agitated Pete had become in her short absence. It saved her the trouble of having to come up with an elaborate lie.  
  
Myka hated having to deceive her partner. It was true, she had not lied to him – there really was nothing relevant to their current artifact chase hiding back there in the shadows.  
What she didn't tell him, however, was that she knew exactly what had been hiding in the shadows.  
  
Stuffing her hands into her jacket pocket, she let the fingers of her right hand curl around the small piece of paper resting there. Her thumb traced the words she knew to be written down on it, in elaborate, flowing script, her skin warming the paper.  
  
It crinkled slightly at her touch.  
  
She smiled.  
  
Myka Bering definitely wasn't ready to share her secret just yet.

 

Once they got back to the hotel they'd been staying at for the last two nights for this particular mission, and after a too long car ride back to the B&B, (during which she tried very hard to ignore Pete's semi-constant glances in her direction), Myka gladly retired to her room. She thought it save to leave it to the rest of the team to update Artie, the longing for some quiet time to herself overriding her sense of duty for once. Kicking off her boots and throwing her leather jacket over the back of the room's solitary chair, she collapsed onto the bed with a sigh.  
  
Moving her hand absentmindedly, she registered the presence of the piece of paper, which she seemingly had been holding onto all this time. Closing her eyes tiredly, she moved her hand to rest over her heart, the steady beat soothing her slightly frazzled nerves – she wasn't ready to admit to any other unconscious message her mind was trying to send her through the gesture yet – and tried to sort events of the recon in her head.

As soon as she had stepped deeper into the cover of darkness, she felt a cool hand cover her mouth and a second hand creeping along her stomach to wrap around her waist. Then she was pulled backwards, backwards, back until her eyes couldn't make out anything but blackness, and her body felt nothing but the steel covered in softness at her back, and the cool breath of the presence behind her gently flitting across the side of her neck. Then the hand over her mouth moved to trail a ghost of a touch over her cheek and down the other side of her neck, until it tangled with the other hand now resting comfortably on her stomach, essentially enveloping her in a hug.  
  
"Hello, Helena," Myka breathed, her voice nothing more than a barely-there disturbance of the air around them. She knew she was heard, no matter how quietly she spoke.  
  
"Hello, my darling," the cultured, accented lilt, the smoky quality to it, sent goosebumps down Myka's back, just as it always did, especially if she hadn't heard that voice in a while, and her brain was starved for the stimulation. She felt the arms around her loosening their hold, allowing her to turn around in the embrace. Despite the darkness, Myka was able to make out Helena's pale face without trouble. Feasting her eyes at the sight in front of her, the curly haired woman studied the vision in front of her. Locking her eyes with those black ones that had ensnared her in their depth from the moment she had first caught a glimpse of them almost three months ago, she searched for the red glimmer that seemed to be a constant presence, and which had always fascinated her so. Helena's eyebrow quirked slightly, and a smirk tugged at the corners of her sensual lips. Then, her eyes flicked down to Myka's own mouth and there it was, the spark that seemed to light every fiber in her pupils on fire. Myka gasped softly, never not astounded by the display.  
  
"You know, I am not sure if you are looking forward to seeing me, or just my eyes, dear." Helena drawled, the teasing note in her voice involuntarily putting a smile onto Myka's lips.  
  
"Can't it be both?" she whispered, "Because I certainly can't do this with your eyes."  
  
Closing the small gap between them, Myka pressed her mouth to the other woman's, the contrast between her own warm lips and Helena's perpetually cool ones eliciting a gasp from her. She hoped she would never get used to that first exhilarating contact between them. And then she just stopped thinking, instead enjoying the way Helena's lips nipped at her bottom lip, and the way her tongue lazily swiped over it afterward, before delving deeply into Myka's welcoming mouth. The other woman eagerly reciprocated, tangling her tongue with Helena's in a sensual dance that left her breathless. Her hands found their way into dark, long, and silky hair, relishing the way the strands glided through her fingers. Eventually, the need for air became too much to ignore and Myka reluctantly broke away from their kiss, trying to catch her breath. Helena, of course, had no such troubles, but calmly waited for the agent to regain her composure, and took the opportunity to brush a few curls of hair out of her face. Myka smiled at the gentle gesture, a soft tingling in her stomach letting her know how much she appreciated it. And the woman standing before her.  
  
Suddenly, Helena's eyes swiveled to her right, her brow furrowing slightly. "I believe it is time for you to go, darling. Your obnoxious partner is about to have a heart attack."  
  
Myka sighed. "He's not so bad, really. You just need to get to know him, before you start to like him."  
  
"If you say so, dear." Helena said and then pulled out a small piece of paper from her expensive looking trench coat. "This will make it easier for you to reach me." She then proceeded to press another soft kiss against Myka's lips, before gently pushing her back in the direction of her partner.  
  
Before Myka could protest, or say goodbye, she had already vanished back into the darkness. 

Emerging back out of her thoughts, Myka softly trailed her fingers over her mouth, the sensation of Helena's lips caressing her own nothing more but the ghost of a memory, yet still enough to send a blush to her cheeks.  
  
She hadn't asked how Helena had known where to find her; she had given up that venture long ago. She just knew that the other woman had the uncanny ability to show up where Myka was, sometimes just to lend her silent support with her mere presence, sometimes even stepping into the line of fire. Myka remembered those two occasions where Helena had arrived in just the nick of time to prevent her from getting hurt, possibly even killed.

With a soft chuckle, she then remembered the first time they had met.

Myka and Pete had been on another artifact hunt, in Boston, where a football had been causing trouble. After a successful snag, bag and tag, Pete had decided to spend his night off watching a game live, with tickets she didn't want to know how he had gotten his hands onto, claiming it was the perfect way to end this particular mission. Myka had just rolled her eyes and shooed him out the door, looking forward to spend the night curled up in bed, with a good book instead. Deciding that she needed a pack of twizzlers to make the evening even more perfect, Myka grabbed some money, and her gun and headed out the door to a twenty-four hour store around the corner of the hotel. She quickly made her purchase, already looking forward to taking her first bite, and left the story with a cheery good bye for the clerk.  
  
Halfway back to the hotel, she paused when she heard a noise in the alley to her right. Her hand instinctively going to her hip to grip her gun, she inched forward. "Hello?" she called, hoping for a reply, but knowing she wouldn't get one. The only response was the drip of water onto the damp ground. Despite the absence of a response, Myka could feel eyes watching her every move. Drawing her gun, she carefully made her way into the alley. She could feel her breath coming in quick puffs, and her heart beating in an accelerated tempo in her chest. After about five steps, she suddenly came face to face with a woman, who had seemingly materialized out of thin air. Myka barely suppressed the urge to jump in shock.  
  
"Now, now. There is really no need for this. I have no intention of hurting you." Raising her eyebrow in a move that should not be as graceful as it was, she waited for the agent to lower her gun. When Myka didn't move, she stepped closer and arched her eyebrow a bit further still. "Really, darling, I would appreciate it very much if you could take that gun out of my face now."  
  
Myka, pulled out of her trance by the soft command, blinked and did as she was told, for some reason not being able to resist the accented voice and the mysterious eyes (was there really red in there?).  
  
Swallowing hard, she finally seemed to find her voice again. "I'm sorry. I just heard a noise and came to investigate. I didn't mean to be rude."  
  
"It's quite alright. No harm done. I must say, it is, however, quite brave of you to dare enter a dark alleyway in the middle of the night in order to investigate a noise. Most women would not dare do so, not even with the aid of a firearm."  
  
"Well, that's kinda my job. And you don't seem to be uncomfortable at all, lurking in said alleyways."  
  
The woman's lilting laugh did things to Myka's insides which she couldn't explain. Or did not want to explain.  
  
The mysterious woman chuckled, and Myka wanted to pout at how attractive that sound was, coming from her throat. "That's quite a bit different, darling. I don't believe there is anything I have to be scared of, here in the dark."  
  
Myka swallowed. "And why's that?"  
  
Her mouth curled into a sly smile. "Now, what secret would it be, if I would just tell you?" Her eyes took in the agent's face (there was definitely red in those eyes somewhere, Myka thought), before traveling over the rest of her body. Usually, Myka would have taken offense in being so openly and thoroughly checked out, but for some reason, the woman's gaze lit a pleasant tingling in her limbs instead. "You will have to work a little bit harder for that, dear."  
  
Myka gulped and the sly smile on her opposite's face deepened. "Why don't you tell me your name? I think that would be a good start, don't you?"  
  
Before she knew it, Myka nodded and blurted out her name.  
  
"Well, Myka Bering. It is a pleasure to meet you." She reached out to shake Myka's hand, and as soon as their skin touched, Myka knew she was lost.  
  
"You may call me Helena." 

She also knew she didn't want to be found. 

Helena had later teased her that apparently, they had been destined to meet at gunpoint, to which Myka had just rolled her eyes and proceeded to shut her up by slanting her mouth over the other woman's smiling lips. She then had pushed her back onto the soft mattress – another city, another hotel, but right now, Myka wasn't complaining – and there had been no more talking for a long good while.  
  
Of course, it was difficult to keep their relationship a secret, especially with Pete always accompanying her on missions, but so far, they had managed. It wasn't that Myka was afraid he would find out that she was seeing another woman. It was more a matter of what that woman actually was. Myka doubted Pete would understand.  
  
Deciding to make use of her alone time, she carefully unfolded the scrap of paper still clutched in her hand and rolled over to grab her cell phone off the nightstand. Punching in the number, she hit send and then pressed the phone to her ear. She smiled at the 'Until next time, darling' Helena had added beneath the phone number, while she waited for the line to be picked up.  
  
She didn't have to wait long. After the second ring, the Brit's voice floated down the line.  
  
"Hello, there, Myka. What a pleasant surprise to hear from you."  
  
"I know, it's weird, isn't it? You see, I found this mysterious number in my coat pocket and thought I should investigate who that could belong too. Imagine my surprise, hearing your voice just now!"  
  
"Yes, the universe doth seem to work in mysterious ways."  
  
"Sure does. In this case, I'm pretty happy about it, though."  
  
There was a sensual hum at the other end of the line, and Myka took that as agreement.  
  
They were silent for a moment; just enjoying knowing the other was there, before Helena broke the comfortable silence.  
  
"So tell me, darling, what exactly is it that you are looking for in Fredericksburg, Virginia, of all places?"  
  
"One of the bandages used by Clara Barton and Walt Whitman during the Battle of Fredericksburg makes you think you are able to heal anything, any sickness and plight, after you've touched it. So far, three people almost died in accidents because their rescuers didn't think it necessary to call an ambulance and took it upon themselves to help."  
  
"Sounds like you have been keeping busy then. Any good leads?"  
  
"Not yet. It looked like the whammied, or one of the whammied, we're still not sure how many afflicted there are exactly, had made their way towards that old warehouse you found me in today, but obviously, that lead was a bust," she explained, and then added before her brain could catch up with her mouth, "Well, not exactly, since I got to see you."  
  
The laugh her statement drew from Helena was worth the burn in her cheeks.  
  
"I am certainly glad I could distract you from the disappointment of a failed hunt, then."  
  
"You'd know about that better than I. The hunting part, I mean."  
  
"I would very much hope so." Her voice had dropped a little, adding a husky note to it that sent a thrill down Myka's spine.  
  
She pushed a wayward curl back behind her ear and scrambled for a suitable reply. Before she could come up with one, however, there was a knock on the door, soon followed by Pete's voice.  
  
"Yo, Mykes, you still up?"  
  
"Yes, just a minute, Pete!" she called back, grumbling inwardly at his timing.  
  
"It seems your attention is wanted elsewhere." Helena's voice sounded, before Myka could explain the interruption. Of course her ears would have picked up everything, Myka thought.  
  
"Yes, sorry about that. I had hoped it would take them a bit longer to come find me."  
  
"Don't apologize, darling. I enjoy every conversation with you, no matter how long."  
  
"Me, too. Good night, Helena."  
  
"Good night, darling."  
  
The line went dead before Myka had to bring herself to press the end button. Sighing, she rolled off the bed and then hid the number under her pillow hurriedly.  
  
Then she went to see what it was that could not have waited for a few more minutes.  
  
She had barley opened the door, before Pete, Claudia and Steve marched into her room, carrying popcorn, ice cream and sodas.  
  
"What took you so long?" Pete complained as he dumped his load onto the bed.  
  
Myka ignored his question and asked one of her own instead. "What is all of this supposed to be?"  
  
"Movie night!" Claudia squealed, in a tone that suggested what a dumb question that was.  
  
"We'll order a movie, eat junk food and enjoy good company. A reward for a job well done!"  
  
"Pete, we don't even have a clue who we are looking for, so we are so far from done, we can't even begin to guess where the finish line is!"  
  
"Shh, don't ruin my story with your logic!"  
  
Myka just rolled her eyes and flung her hands into the air. It seemed that her quiet evening had already ended.  
  
Pete surreptitiously tried to keep an eye on Myka throughout the evening, looking for clues that could help him figure out this niggling feeling he had been getting for the past couple of months. Something was going on with her, but he couldn't for the life of him tell what it was. He had shared his suspicions with Claudia and subsequently with Jinks and they had agreed to help him solve this mystery. Now they were all hauled up in Myka's hotel room, watching a silly movie and trying not to tip her off that anything was going on.  
  
He watched as Myka got up to use the bathroom and sighed in relief as the door closed behind her. Man, trying to keep anything from Myka was exhausting, he thought.  
  
Trying to get more comfortable where he was resting with his back against the headboard, he frowned when he head a soft crinkling sound. Wriggling his butt again, he heard it again and went digging for whatever it was that was hiding under the pillow.  
  
It didn't take him long to locate it. Unfolding the small paper scrap, his frown deepened when he read the short note.  
  
It seemed he had just found a puzzle piece for their mystery.  
  
Quickly grabbing Claudia's phone off the nightstand beside him, he snapped a picture of the note and then stuffed it back under the pillow where he had found it.  
He would ask Claudia later to figure out where that phone number lead to.  
Then he continued watching the movie as if nothing had happened, all the while trying to make sense of what he had found.  
That handwriting was definitely female; elegant, high-class. He could have sworn it had been written with one of those really expensive and fancy fountain pens. It almost felt as if it was a message from a past century, and Pete nearly laughed at his own silliness.  
  
Of course they didn't have cell phones a hundred years ago.

 

The next day, at exactly 5:56 pm, Helena snapped out of her meditative state as her phone started to ring. Moving through her darkened apartment with a jaguar-like grace, she picked the small device off the table and answered with a smile.  
  
"I must admit, I hadn't expected you to call again so soon. Did you miss me already?" she teased, in that tone of voice she knew Myka liked.  
  
Silence greeted her and her smile quickly evaporated. "Myka? Darling, are you alright?"  
  
Someone was definitely at the other end of the line. She could hear them breathing. Concentrating, she could also tell that is was not Myka. Her breathing pattern was different from this one. Helena's whole body tensed, readying for an attack, even if there was no physical form for her to fight.  
  
"Listen very carefully," she growled into the receiver. "You better hope for your own sake that you have not hurt the owner of that phone you are holding, or I will hunt you down and I will find you, and I promise you, you will not like what I will do to you."  
  
She heard a gulp and then the line went dead.  
  
Freezing where she stood, Helena did not move a muscle while she waited for the sun to sink behind the horizon. When the last of the sun's rays vanished, the vampire started moving, quickly and efficiently.

It was time to go on the hunt.


	2. Chapter 2

"Remind me to never, ever let you drive again, Claud." Myka groaned, holding her stomach as she staggered out of the car. The B&B was just a few feet away, but it still seemed too far for Myka's taste. Her stomach was a mess and she wanted nothing more than to lie down in front of the fireplace with a soothing cup of tea and wait it out. "Where did you learn how to drive, anyways?" she moaned.

"Dude, my driving is not that bad. Apparently you just can't handle as much speed as you used to. You're getting old." The youngster teased her, knowing she was safe from Myka's wrath for the time being. The older woman managed a halfhearted glare in her direction – and did not notice the slightly apprehensive glance the younger woman threw back in return- much as Claudia had been throwing in her direction all day.

Myka was tired, nauseated and cranky, especially since the last 24 hours had been a blur of activity. After their somewhat fun movie night, they had gone to bed only to be dragged back out at 5am by an unhappy Artie, ordering them to get their butts out of bed and get to the airport in next town over, flying back out to Fredericksburg where the bandage had activated another ping at the Warehouse.

After that, it was relatively easy to apprehend Lucas Seymore, who had been working in Chatham Manor as a janitor and had one day, quite by accident, gotten his hands on the bandage. The snagging of said bandage and the subsequent bagging had only resulted in a bump on the head for Pete and a few bruises for Steve (of which both of them had decided to never speak again). Their cover story in place and Seymore left with the local authorities, they stepped out of the police precinct, into the early spring sun that shone cheerily down on them. Too tired to really enjoy the weather, they decided to grab a quick bite to eat, before making their way back to the car and toward the B&B.

From that point on, it had been a long trip back home. They'd hurriedly packed in order to catch the next possible flight, which they had boarded with literally minutes to spare. Then there had been some technical problems with their layover flight, forcing them to stay on the ground for a good while longer than what the whole trip back would have actually taken them. During all of this, Myka had wished she could have spoken to Helena, but in the haste of their departure from Fredericksburg, she had not had time to charge the battery of her cell phone, which ultimately died several hours ago. And she couldn't just ask one of the others to let her borrow their phone. She didn't want to have to field those questions.

The car ride from the airport back to the B&B had taken an hour less than it usually would have, thanks to Claudia's _enthusiastic_ driving, and Myka was thankful to be home. She could have done without the funny feeling in her stomach, though. Dragging her travel bag from the trunk of the car, she followed behind the others, shivering slightly. The temperature had dropped quite a bit as soon as the sun had vanished to make room for her counterpart, which reinforced Myka's desire for a hot cup of tea. Making her way up the steps and into the welcoming warmth of Leena's B&B, behind the others, she breathed a sigh of relief as she dropped her bags and got rid of her jacket and boots.

The first thing she would do was prepare some tea and then she'd find her phone's charger in the bottom of her luggage and she would finally call her...what was she? Affair? No, neither of them had a partner they were cheating on, and Myka would never cheat on anyone anyways. She was pretty sure Helena wouldn't either. Girlfriend, then? The thought brought a smile to Myka's lips. She'd just ask Helena as soon as she got a hold of her.

That spurred her back into action and she made her way to the kitchen, where she greeted the owner of the establishment. "Hi, Leena! You have no idea how glad I am to be back home!"

"Welcome back! You guys have been missed," the softly spoken woman greeted back, smiling. "Dinner should be ready in about half an hour. I am sure you must be starving."

"Dinner does sound great, yes. Although a tea has priority for me right now. Please remind me to never let Claudia drive again. At least not when I'm planning to sit in the same car."

Leena laughed softly. "I've told her she has to slow down a bit, but it seems she's already forgotten my advice."

"I'm sure she'll listen eventually. At least I hope so." Myka said, a grimace on her pretty face.

She went about preparing her tea while Leena checked on dinner. A couple of minutes later, the agent's hands were wrapped around a steaming mug, which she brought to her nose, taking a deep breath, enjoying the spicy scent.

"I'll get to unpacking then," she told the other woman, "I'll be back down once dinner's ready."

Leena nodded and sent her on her way.

Grabbing her bag from the foyer, Myka climbed the stairs to her room. Balancing the tea in one hand and hefting the bag over her shoulder, Myka pushed the door to her room open, switched on the light...and nearly had a heart attack.

"Jesus!" she exclaimed, almost spilling her tea all over her hand.

"Myka, is everything alright?" Leena's concerned voice drifted up the stairs.

"Ugh. Yes! Yes, don't worry, I just nearly spilled my tea all over the floor. It's all good, though!" she hastily answered, before slamming the door behind her.

Then her eyes took in the form of the woman lounging in her reading chair, looking for all the world as if she had never belonged anywhere else.

"Hello, darling," her voice was as smoky as always, but Myka thought she detected a concerned tone underneath the haze.

"Helena!" She exclaimed before catching herself and lowering her voice. "What are you doing here?" Her brow furrowed. "And how did you even get in here? I thought vampires couldn't enter a house without being invited in and all that."

"I found it has been quite difficult to get a hold of you in any other way. And all those stories have been an invention in order to make mortals feel safer," Helena explained with a dismissive wave of her elegant hand.

Myka's brows furrowed. "What do you mean, getting a hold of me?" She then realized that she was still standing by the door, her tea burning her hand, and the bag getting too heavy on her shoulder. Crossing the room to her bed, she put the tea on the nightstand and the bag on the floor beside it.

"I got a call yesterday," Helena began, "from someone who wasn't you."

Myka, taking a seat on the bed opposite the other woman, raised her eyebrow, not quite understanding the significance. "So?"

"Only one person has the number to that phone. That person is you. Naturally, I assumed it was you calling me. When I received no reply on the other end of the line, I became concerned. I became even more so when I realized that it was not you on the other end of that line. I tried reaching you on your telephone a number of times, but with no success. Are you quite alright?"

"Oh! Oh, God, Helena! I am so sorry! My battery died and I had no time to charge it. I am so sorry I had you worried!" Another thought came to her then. "But, if I'm the only one who has your number, then who called you?"

"That is an excellent question, my dear." Helena said, then, in one fluid motion, in which Myka barely had time to blink, she was directly in front of her, her cool hands cupping Myka's cheeks in her palms. The touch was so soft that Myka thought Helena was afraid she would break her with any more pressure.

Helena's raven hair fell over her shoulders as she leaned forward, creating a curtain around the two of them, blocking them out from the rest of the world. Myka could feel her breath caressing her face. Vaguely, Myka noted that even the vampire's breath was cool, just like the rest of her.

"Just promise me, my Myka, to never scare me like that again. I do not know what I would do if anything were to happen to you." There was so much pain in her voice that Myka suddenly had trouble catching her breath. Instinctively grasping Helena's hips with her hands and pulling her closer, Myka pressed her forehead gently against the other woman's. "I am so, so sorry. I never meant to scare you. I promise to try my hardest never do it again."

A shuddering breath left Helena's lips, before they were urgently pressing against Myka's mouth. Moaning softly, the curly haired woman wasted no time in granting her searching tongue access to the depth of her mouth. Sneaking her hands underneath Helena's shirt, enjoying the way her skin cooled the slight burn in her left hand, she tugged on Helena's hips to get her to settle into her lap. Helena happily followed the silent invitation, her thighs soon bracketing Myka's hips, her hands burrowing themselves in curly hair.

The vampire's tongue swept over the roof of Myka's mouth, sending a shiver down her spine and ripping another moan from her throat. In response, Myka proceeded to suck on Helena's tongue, before gently biting into her bottom lip, only to sooth the sting with a gently swipe of her own tongue. Myka relished the moan her actions managed to elicit from the other woman.

Meanwhile, Helena's hands started a journey down Myka's body. A barely-there caress over the curve of her neck, a teasing touch to the dip of her collarbone, a gentle swipe over the tip of her breast.

Tearing her lips away from the temptation of the other woman's mouth, Myka gasped as the feelings Helena's touch was awakening inside her spread throughout her whole body, sending every nerve ending tingling. Tugging Helena's shirt farther up her waist, Myka retaliated by dragging her nails gently up the curve of the vampire's spine, and attacking her neck with lips, tongue and teeth. Getting an approving groan for her actions, Myka smiled against Helena's neck. Her smugness earned her a tug in her hair, then her head was being pulled back and her mouth was being attacked in a passionate kiss. Not that Myka was complaining. Leaning back, Myka pulled the woman in her lap back with her, tugging Helena further into her body when Myka's back hit the mattress.

Helena used the opportunity of the new position to allow her hands to cup Myka's breast, causing the woman beneath her to moan at the contact. At the slight chill of her hands, the younger woman's nipples hardened instantly. Helena smiled against Myka's lips and gave her hostages a gentle squeeze. Myka moaned and her back arched slightly, pressing herself further into the other woman's touch. She could feel the heavy throbbing of arousal starting to settle between her thighs and her hands pressed Helena's hips tighter against her own, desperate for some relief.

The woman on top of her chuckled lowly into her ear. "Patience, love."

"God, Helena. I think my patience has evaporated somewhere around hour five of being stuck in an uncomfortable seat in a middle-of-nowhere-airport!"

"Oh you mortals," Helena murmured against the soft flesh of her neck, her lips trailing against the sensitive skin, making Myka shudder. "Always wanting everything to go faster. Sometimes, it is more rewarding to slow down."

"That wasn't what you said a few nights ago. If I remember correctly, you were begging me to do quite the opposite." Myka's teasing earned her a nip of sharp teeth to the string of muscles on the side of her neck. Myka gasped in pleasure.

"Oh, you like that, do you?" Helena hummed.

"Mhh, you know I do. Don't play coy with me." Another nip to her neck ripped an obscenity from Myka's mouth.

"Tssk, such a mouth on someone as lovely as you." Helena nibbled her neck delicately, hiding a smirk.

"Helena, dammit, please. Just hurry up and stop teasing!" Myka half ordered, half begged.

"Have your parents never taught you to respect your elders, dear?"

Myka groaned. "Don't mention my parents, Helena! God."

Helena laughed quietly. "Oh, you are adorable."

Myka grumbled and raked her nails against Helena's back again, in an act of pure petulance.

She was just about ready to take matters into her own hands, when a knock sounded at the door, followed by Leena's voice.

"Myka, dinner's ready," she announced softly.

"Thanks, Leena, I'll be right down!" Myka managed, her voice surprisingly steady.

They listened as Leena's footsteps faded down the hallway, then Myka let her head fall back against the mattress with a soft thump and a frustrated sigh.

"Well, talk about a bucket of cold water," she grumbled.

"It is probably very fortunate that we have been interrupted. I do believe it better for you to get some nourishment before we continue this. I have quite the plans for you, darling."

Myka groaned again. "This is not helping, Helena."

The vampire chuckled again, giving her a hungry look as she got up. "The sooner you go to dinner, the quicker you can be back on that bed."

That was all the encouragement Myka needed.

Helena settled back into the chair, grabbing the book she had abandoned upon Myka's arrival.

The younger woman gave the vampire one last longing look over her shoulder, before the door closed behind her and she moved to join the others downstairs for dinner.

  


* * *

  


"Mykes, hey!" Pete greeted her,once she had entered the dining room, then did a quick double take. "Woah, you look flushed. You alright?"

"Must be the tea," the woman in question mumbled and hurriedly sat down at the table.

"Okaaaay." Pete said, clearly not quite believing her. Claudia was also looking at her with a skeptical expression on her face that did not vanish all throughout dinner.

Getting more and more uncomfortable by the minute under their constant observation, Myka hurried through the meal, barely tasting the food.

When she couldn't stand the tension anymore, she put her fork down with a little more force than was necessary and finally met their gazes. "What!" she snapped, catching the attention of the rest of their makeshift little family.

"What what?" Pete asked, trying hard to look confused.

"Don't give me that crap, Pete!" Myka glared at him. "You and Claudia have been on the edges of your seats ever since I entered the room. Ever since last evening, actually. What the hell is going on?"

"We actually wanted to ask you the very same question, dude." Claudia said, looking determined.

"What do you mean? I'm not the one giving you guys weird looks."

"But you are the one with the secret girlfriend!" Claudia accused.

Myka's eyes went wide, the sudden realization of what was going on dawning bright and clear. "It was you!" she exclaimed, not even trying to deny Claudia's accusation, her voice rising to new heights.

"It was me what?"

"You called her and scared the crap out of her!"

" _I_ scared the crap out of _her_? How about _she_ scared the holy bejeezus out of _me_!"

"What the hell are you all talking about!" Artie's voice interrupted their little friendly discussion, sounding more confused and annoyed than he had ever been before.

Claudia glanced first at Myka, next at Artie, and then took a deep breath before hurriedly starting to explain before Myka could strike her down with the force of her glare alone. "Myka was being all secretive and weird and then yesterday evening, Pete found a note hidden under Myka's pillow-" (she ignored the way Pete tried to not-so-subtly shut her up and not to mention him, preferably ever again) "- with a number on it, so he made me figure out who it belonged to. So I called that number the next day and this British chick answered and I kinda didn't know what to say, so then she started to threaten me and-"

"She threatened you?!" Artie exploded, nearly rising out of his chair.

"Well, I later figured out that she did sound, you know, concerned about Myka's well being, and me not saying anything on the phone probably gave her the wrong impression, so, uh, yeah." Claudia fiddled with the tablecloth while she spoke, not meeting anyone's eyes.

"And I realize I may have overreacted slightly with my actions." Another voice joined the conversation, startling them. All eyes swiveled in her direction as Helena stepped out of the shadows of the doorway, looking composed and elegant as always. Addressing the young redhead directly, as she came to a stop beside Myka's chair at the table, placing her hand on Myka's shoulder. Helena spoke softly, "I apologize for giving you a scare. I did not realize that my unknown caller was part of Myka's family. My concern for her shortly overrode my manners, it seems. I hope you will accept my sincerest apologies, young lady."

Claudia just stared at the striking creature standing before her, her eyes blinking rapidly and her mouth opening and closing several times without a single tone emerging from it.

Helena continued to gaze at her steadily, not put off by the lack of response in the slightest.

"I...uh." Claudia finally made her vocal cords work again, "Yeah. No, it's fine. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have, you know, called like that. I didn't realize it would freak you out so much and I wasn't really expecting the voice of a hot lady on the other end and I'll just shut up now."

An amused smile tugged at the corner of Helena's lips. "Why, thank you, dear."

"Huh?"

"I do believe there is a positive connotation associated with 'hot', in this culture, is it not?"

Claudia nodded. "Totally." Then and adorable blush settled on her cheeks.

"Excuse me, but who the hell are you?" Artie, once again, took it upon himself to destroy the moment.

Black and red eyes snapped in his direction. "Helena Wells, sir. At your service."

Helena gave a mocking little bow and Myka had to bite back a smile. If Artie could be rude, so could Helena, in her own special way.

Artie paled. A mixture of fear and anger settled over his features.

"Myka," he growled. "What where you thinking, bringing that...that _thing_ into this house?"

A deathly silence followed and Myka's heart gave a painful squeeze. This was not how she had hoped this meeting would go.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is where the M rating comes from, so beware of the sexytimes, people! ;)

The disapproval in Artie's voice nearly brought tears to Myka's eyes. For one, she had never liked disappointing anybody, maybe it was one of her flaws, always putting everybody's happiness before her own, but it couldn't be changed, despite how hard she had tried. This terrible feeling was taking her back to being a teenager and still living under her parents' roof. Her father had rarely shown any approval of Myka's actions, no matter how hard the girl had tried to please him. It had led to a deep-set fear that her father would never approve of Myka doing anything out of the norm. Getting him to accept her position in the Secret Service had taken a lot of strength and a lot of time. Getting him to accept that she was in love with a woman was something Myka tried hard not to think about.

And now Artie was standing in front of her, all righteous indignation and anger, personifying Myka's fear. The one man she had always thought of as a father, when her own father had been nearly non-existent in her own life for so long, was doing exactly what Myka feared Warren Bering would always do.

He was reacting with rage at Helena's presence.

Closing her eyes for a moment, to search for strength she wasn't sure she possessed, Myka forced back the burn of tears.

Looking steadily at Artie, she said, "First of all, her name is Helena. Second of all, this is my home too; I should feel comfortable bringing my girlfriend here if I want to. Also, you don't even know her, so I don't know why you are acting this way. It's totally uncalled for, especially since she has been nothing but nice to all of you, _apologizing_ for wanting to protect me! Helena has been nothing but kind, loving, and gentle to me, so if you could stop with your prejudices and actually try to get to know her first, I'd really appreciate that!" Her voice had risen like it always did when she was angry and her hands were shaking slightly, so she put them between her knees and took a deep breath.

Then, Helena's hand settled on her shoulder and squeezed gently in silent support and thanks, making Myka calm down faster than her preferred chamomile tea ever could.

Myka, however, wasn't the only one who was shaking. Artie didn't even try to hide it.

" _She is a vampire_!" He growled, speaking slowly as if she had trouble understanding.

There were several chokes and gasps and a squeaked " _What?_ " from Pete that reminded her of the time he had accidentally jammed his thumb in the bathroom door.

"I know that," she answered calmly, grasping Helena's hand that was still resting on her shoulder, tangling their fingers together.

"You...you _know_?" He sputtered. "Is that all you can say? _You know_? And yet you still bring it here?"

" _Her_. Her name is Helena!" Myka repeated. "And you better get used to it." With those words, she got up from the table, still tightly grasping the other woman's hand in her own. She thanked Leena for the delicious dinner and then pulled Helena behind her, back up the steps to her room.

Once they had reached the quietness of her humble adobe, Helena turned to face her and took hold of her second hand as well. Looking at her, her dark eyes full of sorrow, she took a moment to sort her thoughts.

"Darling," she finally spoke, voice tinged with regret, "please forgive me. I could hear you arguing and I felt you getting angrier by the second and I thought I could provide some resolution to the argument. It seems I only made things worse. I am deeply sorry. If I had known what my presence would cause, I would never have come here."

Myka, pained by the knowledge that Helena thought this whole mess was her fault, once again had to fight back her tears. Shaking her head urgently, and swallowing hard, she rasped, "Don't. Please, Helena, don't apologize. None of this is your fault! If I hadn't been so secretive for the past few weeks, maybe Pete and Claudia hadn't thought it necessary to go looking for answers. If I had taken the time to hide your note better, Pete would never have found it. If I had remembered to charge my stupid phone earlier, you wouldn't have had to come looking for me, thinking the worst. Don't you see? We could play this what-if game indefinitely and it wouldn't help us at all."

Helena agreed with a graceful tilt of her head and then chuckled quietly, finding humor in a situation where Myka just wanted to rage at the unfairness of it all.

"Please tell me what's so funny? Because I could really use a joke right about now."

"It seems that all I am doing tonight is apologizing. In fact, I do not think I've ever apologized this many times in over a hundred years. You truly are special to me, Myka Bering."

Myka laughed, relief bubbling out of her in waves, a lone tear managing to fight itself free to trail down her cheek. "There's one good thing this argument provided, you know?" she said, sniffling softly.

"What's that, love?"

"It keeps me from having to come up with the best way to ask you if you're my girlfriend or not."

Now it was Helena's turn to laugh, delighted. "Oh, Myka, my darling," she whispered, trailing a gentle hand along Myka's cheek and swiping that one stubborn tear away. "I thought I made it quite clear that I was courting you, and that courtship usually ends in a stable relationship. Maybe my skills have become a bit rusty over the last couple of decades. I haven't done this in quite some time, you know?"

Myka beamed at her, impulsively pressing a kiss to her lips. "You're doing just fine. It was me that was a bit slow on the uptake. I'm still trying to get used to this."

"You appear to be quite able to me," Helena teased, a sly smile once again sneaking onto her lips.

"Yeah?" Myka whispered against the other woman's lips.

"Mhh-hm. Very much so," Helena murmured before claiming her mortal's lips between her own.

Before she could get lost inside the kiss, Myka hesitantly pushed Helena away, remembering something. "Wait. Let me lock the door first, before we continue this. I wouldn't put it past Artie to come storming in here with a stake and holy water."

"Then I should probably let him know that those will not be of much use to him," Helena said as she watched Myka lock the door. "On second thought, maybe not."

"No, maybe not." Myka agreed as she let herself be pulled toward the bed.

  
  


* * *

  
  


Meanwhile, back downstairs, the others still sat around the table, more or less successful in calming Artie down and trying to get information out of him at the same time.

"Artie, man, you need to take breath and calm down! Your face is all red, and I doubt it's good for your heart and all." Pete tried to talk his boss down, while pressing on his shoulders to get him to sit back down.

"I am calm! I am as calm as I'm ever going to get with that... _woman_ in the house," he groused, swiping a hand over his face in frustration.

"How did you know what she is? I mean, yeah, she's really pale and all that and there's this eerie quality to her eyes. Aaand did anybody else feel that chill settling over the room when she entered or was that just me?" Claudia babbled, still a bit nervous from the left-over presence still seeming to linger in the room. "Anyways, you just heard her name and got nearly as pale as she is! Which was kinda cool to watch, I'm just sayin'."

Artie grumbled something incoherent under his breath, then took a swig of his water, trying to get rid of the parched feeling in his throat. All that stress really wasn't doing him any good. He sighed.

"You may know her better as H.G. Wells. And it is no secret amongst Warehouse agents that she succumbed to the vampire virus in 1893. She used to be an agent for Warehouse 12, but went off the rails in her search for revenge after her daughter was murdered. That search led her to vampirism."

"The dead British author? But I thought that was a dude. And you know, well, dead." Pete said, scratching his head in confusion.

Artie gave him a look. "It wasn't all that easy to get a book published back then, when you happened to be a woman, in case you didn't know. Also, I hate to break it to you, but the 'dead' part still sticks."

"So let me get this straight." Steve entered the conversation. "H.G Wells is actually a woman, who was also a Warehouse agent, who died in 1893, but not really, because she became a vampire instead and continued to walk the earth, only to end up in 2013. In this house?" He sat back in his chair, folding his hands across his stomach. "Huh. That's actually pretty cool."

"No. No it is not _cool_!" Artie exclaimed. "Is nobody bothered that a born killer is currently upstairs in Myka's room, alone with her?" He asked, exasperated at their lack of understanding. "Vampires kill people for food! What's stopping her from doing the same to Myka?"

Having had enough of this conversation that didn't seem to go anywhere, Artie got up from the chair. "Where the hell is my Tesla. Or better yet, Leena, do we have some stakes lying around somewhere? I am going up there and putting an end to this...delusion."

"No, Artie, you are not." Leena's voice was quite, but stern.

Artie looked at her in confusion. "What? No stakes? Well, I'll make a detour to the Warehouse, then. I'm sure we have some around there somewhere. Also, silver bullets!"

"Weren't those supposed to be for werewolves?" Claudia piped up.

Artie eyes narrowed behind his glasses. "I don't care! I will pump every possible deadly force into that creature's undead corpse, if I have to!"

"Artie, that's enough!" Leena had had more than enough of his narrow-mindedness for one night.

"What do you mean, it's enough! Myka is in danger! Why is nobody doing anything against it?"

"That woman was not lying when she said she was concerned for Myka's well-being." Steve stated, matter-of-factly.

"And all I could read in her aura when she was around Myka, was concern and affection. Also irritation, but that one was directed at you." Leena added, giving Artie a stern look. "So no, you will not go up there and interrupt their time together with your silly crusade. I am sure Myka appreciates your concern, but I can assure you, she is perfectly safe with _her girlfriend_."

Artie snorted. "Girlfriend, of course. What the hell is she thinking, getting in bed with a vampire, of all things!" He exclaimed loudly, before getting up and stomping out of the room. A moment later, the front door banged shut behind him.

The others let out a collective sigh of relief.

There was a moment of silence. Then -

"So, Myka's got a girlfriend."

"A _vampire_ girlfriend."

"A _hot_ vampire girlfriend."

"That is _so cool_!"

"No, actually, it's hot."

"Actually, it really is cool, since it's still chilly in here. How does Myka deal with that, anyways? We should ask her!"

" _Actually_ , it is none of our business." Leena was the voice of reason, as usual, interrupting Pete and Claudia's bantering. Pete looked as if he wanted to disagree, but at the look on Leena's face, he thought better of it.

"Spoilsport," he mumbled, then went back to finishing his third helping of potatoes, green beans, and steak.

He _would_ get to tease Myka about this, Pete thought. That was his right as her sassy best friend, after all.

  
  


* * *

  
  


She could feel her heart beating overtime in her chest, working hard to keep up with her rapid breathing. Goosebumps erupted all over her naked body, making her shudder in anticipation. Longing settled deep in her stomach.

And Helena wasn't even touching her yet.

Hovering over the younger woman, the vampire took her time, just letting her gaze wander over the exquisite form spread out beneath her, her gaze as intense as an actual caress.

Locking her eyes with Myka's, she leaned down and let her lips brush over one nipple, the pebbled flesh hardening at the cool touch. Myka sucked in a breath, when Helena repeated the action on its twin. She took pity on the agent and wrapped her lips around her target, tugging and sucking and nipping gently, making Myka squirm and writhe. The other woman's response was causing a familiar and welcome throbbing from between her own legs. Moaning, Helena let her mouth travel over the slope of a breast, her tongue sometimes peeking out to sample a taste of the soft skin, then switched back to the other. Her long hair trailed after her, essentially taking over the teasing of sensitive skin where her mouth had left off.

Her hands finally joined the game and her fingers traced a path from the tip of Myka's own fingers, over the inside of her wrists, along the crook of the arm and up to her shoulders, where they tickled along her neck, down against her collarbones, only to join Helena's mouth in pleasuring her breasts. Squeezing the heavy globes gently, Helena then tugged the hard peaks between her thumb and forefinger, before teasingly trailing the palms of her hands over them.

"Helena," Myka breathed, half moan, half sigh, when her tongue swirled around a hard nipple next, only to be replaced by sharp fangs. The different sensations made Myka bite her lip and blindly reach for her lover, tangling a hand in raven hair, encouraging her to keep going.

Going lower, lower, lower, dropping kissing and leaving teasing bites in her wake, her hands still busy massaging Myka's breasts, Helena breathed in deeply, once she had reached her destination, feeling her mouth water as Myka's scent hit her nostrils. Growling in eager anticipation, she gave one last squeeze with her hands, before positioning them to grasp strong thighs. After that, she wasted no time in getting her first taste for the night. Swiping her tongue over wet folds in greeting, she once again watched the agent intently, not wanting to miss a single twitch of her expressive face.

The tip of her tongue made its first pass over Myka's clit, causing the younger woman to arch off the bed with a drawn-out moan. Helena pressed her hand against her stomach, getting her to settle back down and keeping her anchored against the mattress. Then, she repeated the motion over and over, interchanging it with a lazy swipe of the flat of her tongue, until Myka was reduced to a litany of "Oh my God!" and "Oh, fuck!" and "Helena, don't stop, please, don't stop!"

Helena had no intention of stopping, the noises the other woman was making like the first sounds of music to previously deaf ears.

She sucked the sensitive flesh softly between her lips, before gently scraping her teeth over it, making Myka moan loudly and her hands clenching, alternating between Helena's hair and the rumpled bedsheets beneath her.

"Oooooh, my God," her lovely green eyes were squeezed shut, her brows furrowed, and her mouth hanging open in pleasure. Helena doubled her effort, adding some of her super-human speed to the process, drawing a cry of intense pleasure from the other woman. When she was sure Myka was hovering just on the edge of release, she inserted two fingers into her welcoming warmth and curled them _just so_.

Myka came with shudders ripping through her whole body, her back ached in a perfect curve and Helena's name leaving her lips in a soft cry.

Staying where she was, her raven hair tickling the inside of Myka's thighs, she placed gentle kisses onto still trembling flesh, until she felt the other woman gently tugging on her hair. Pressing one last lingering kiss to Myka's clit, Helena crawled up her body, until she was greeted by Myka's eager mouth. Getting lost in the kiss for long minutes, she eventually felt a thigh pressing between her own and insistent hands tugging her hips closer. Helena moaned as her wanting flesh pressed against Myka's toned thigh. Moving her hips in a circular motion, it didn't take long for her to establish a fast rhythm, her throbbing clit dragging over soft skin, made easy by the arousal coating it. Between lazy kisses, soft caresses, and the curly haired woman's hands guiding her hips, it didn't take her long to reach her peak. Coming with a low groan that was muffled against Myka's neck, the vampire could feel her most primal urge accompany the height of pleasure. Her fangs pressed insistently against the inside of her lips, but she resisted the instinct. A second later, however, Myka's arms where holding her close against her chest, hands trailing over her back in a sated haze.

"It's okay," she whispered in Helena's ear. "You don't have to hide from me. I trust you."

Helena almost sobbed at the quietly spoken encouragement – a benediction, really – and she felt her restraint floating away on Myka's warm breath against her skin.

Pressing a kiss against her neck in a silent thank you, Helena sank her fangs into the soft and yielding flesh beneath her mouth. Myka moaned in pleasure and her arms tightened, pressing Helena's undead heart against her still beating one.

And then Helena was lost in a sea of roses and vanilla, strawberries and chamomile, and everything that was purely _Myka_.

 


	4. Chapter 4

An awkward silence descended over the small group still sitting around the table in the dining room, after the final distinctive sounds of the two women's activities faded away.

"Well," Steve began, clearing his throat, "that certainly didn't sound like Myka was being tortured to me."

Claudia, her face nearly as red as her hair, studiously avoided eye-contact with any of her companions. "That was like listening to your sister having sex. There are just some things I do not need. No, siree." She frowned. "I think I might be scarred for life."

"How do you think I feel?" Pete complained, a mixture of unease and excitement on his face. "She's my partner and now I don't think I'll ever be able look her in the eyes again. At least not without her knowing that I'm most likely having dirty thoughts."

That earned him a punch from Claudia. "Dude, not cool. Respect the ladies!"

Pete rubbed the sore spot on his arm, glaring at her. "I am respecting the ladies! I'm all about respect!"

Steve smirked at him, "Sure, that's why you were sticking your nose in Myka's business in the first place. Because you were respecting her privacy."

"Hey! I was just being a concerned partner! I was having her back, that's what I'm supposed to do!"

"There's a fine line between having your partner's back and snooping around in things that don't concern you, man." He looked at Claudia, who seemed to sink further into her chair with each passing second. "Same goes for you, Claud."

"I know," she mumbled, playing with the chipped polish on her nails. "I already apologized, okay?"

"No, you apologized to H.G for giving her a scare, you didn't apologize to Myka for calling in the first place."

Claudia just glared at him. "Well, I can't very well march up there right now, can I?"

"Nope, you can definitely save the apologizing for later." Steve said ruefully.

"Yo, man, what's up with that holier-than-though attitude? We didn't hear you attempting to stop us earlier!" Pete was stung and trying to cover, flipping the blame.

"Because I know that there's no reasoning with either of you, if you've already put your minds to something."

"Yeah, right." Pete groused, angry that suddenly all of this was Claudia and his fault. If Myka hadn't been so secretive, none of this would have been necessary. At least that's what he tried to tell himself, to make the niggling feeling of guilt go away.

  
  


* * *

  
  


Laying there in Helena's arms, curled up under rumpled sheets, sated and sleepy, Myka thought that this was the best feeling in the world.

Nuzzling her forehead against the crook of the other woman's neck, she smiled. Yes, she could quite happily stay in this moment forever.

Like all perfect moments, however, it couldn't last. Helena's thumb stilled against Myka's hip where it had been drawing idle patterns for the last few minutes and she squeezed the soft skin under her palm softly.

"As much as I would like to stay here forever," she murmured, unknowingly mirroring Myka's thoughts, "I can't. Unfortunately, I have to leave your bed soon, or I will not make it back to my safe-house in time before dawn breaks."

Myka's arms involuntarily tightened around the vampire's waist, unwilling to let her go just yet. "Can't you stay here?" she asked, already knowing the answer, before the words had left her mouth.

Playfully toying with Myka's hair, Helena shook her head. "I'm sorry, love. Maybe another time." _If your family is a little bit more welcoming towards me._ She left that part unsaid, but it echoed loudly in the stillness of the room anyway.

Myka just nodded, her hair tickling Helena's arm in the process. Wanting to treasure each last minute to its fullest, she propped herself up on her left elbow, and gazed down at her lover adoringly. Trailing her fingertips over Helena's forehead, her cheek, her nose, her lips, she soaked everything in, not knowing when they were getting another chance to just be like this.

Helena gazed up at her, contentment radiating from her every pore. Her forefinger gently caressed the soft hairs at Myka's temple, trailing down to her neck to find the two marks resting there. Helena's brow furrowed slightly and she bit her lip in a rare show of uncertainty.

"What is it?" Myka asked.

Helena hesitantly met soft green eyes. "You don't regret it? I have marked you and everyone will know what we have done."

"Yes, everybody _will_ know. _That I am yours_. And you are mine. I will never regret that." Myka promised her, cringing inwardly at how cliché it sounded, but knew in her heart that every word was true.

Helena beamed at her, cupping both of her cheeks in the palm of her hands and gently pulling her down for a sweet kiss.

"How did I ever get so lucky to find you?" She wondered, awe in her voice.

Myka's emerald eyes twinkled down at her. "If I remember correctly, _I_ found _you_."

"Hmm, yes, and then you pointed a gun at me."

The brunette rolled her eyes. "You will never let me live that down, will you?"

"Never," Helena promised and sealed it with another kiss.

Regrettably breaking the kiss a long moment later, Helena glanced out the window, where it was still utterly dark, but her instinct to move, to run, to hunt, was growing stronger every moment.

"I'm sorry, love," she spoke, still cupping Myka's cheeks, her thumbs caressing the skin softly, as if to take the sting out of her words. "It is time for me to go."

Myka's face fell, but swallowed and then nodded bravely.

"When will I see you again?" she whispered, her breath grazing Helena's palms.

"I do not dare to predict the future, but I know nothing could keep me from you for very long."

"Good," Myka husked, before pressing her lips to her lover's again, never quite getting enough of the feel of her cool skin against her own warm one.

Then it was over and Helena got up off the bed, her gloriously nude form walking around the room without any sign of self-consciousness. Collecting her clothes from where they had been thrown haphazardly, she slowly got dressed, and Myka got the sense that Helena was dragging it out solely for her entertainment. Myka grinned, and propped her chin up on her knees, hugging her legs to her chest, simply enjoying the show.

Helena turned to her, slowly dragging her silk blouse up her arms and starting on the buttons, from bottom to the top. Her dark eyes searching out Myka's gaze as she arched her eyebrow teasingly.

"Are you enjoying the view, darling?"

The agent smirked. "What's not to enjoy?" Then her eyes dropped to the last bit of creamy skin still visible, and her mouth watered. Sighing heavily, she watched as Helena's hands fell away, leaving the top two buttons undone. Her dark jeans were pulled up endlessly long legs and her feet vanished inside stylish boots. Myka nearly pouted when she was done, missing the sight of her skin already.

Helena laughed at the sight, loud and cheerful and the sound alone lifted her spirits again. "Darling, don't pout. It's not very becoming of a lady," the vampire teased, and the way the word 'lady' rolled off her tongue was making Myka shiver with another sudden bout of desire.

She groaned and fell back onto the bed, hands pressed to her eyes in frustration. "How can you reduce me to a shivering, wanting, mess with just one word? It's not fair!" Her complaint was muffled behind her hands. A cool breeze swirled over her skin and then gentle hands were grasping her wrists, tugging slightly. Letting her hands fall away, she peeked at Helena through one half-opened lid.

"What word?" Helena asked, curious.

Myka shook her head. "Nuh-uh. Nope. I'm not telling you, or you'll just use it against me."

Helena grinned, her expression slightly feral. "You may be right about that. _My lady_."

Myka bit her lip to suppress another groan, and squeezed her thighs together in a futile attempt to stem the arousal. She glared at her girlfriend in exasperation. "Don't tease, if you don't plan to do anything about it."

"Oh, I do plan to do something about it. Just...not tonight. So sorry, dear, but I couldn't resist. The look of desire on your face may just be one of my new favorite things. I need a good memory to tide me over until I see you again." Helena's voice trailed off.

Myka's face softened again at the softly spoken words. Still, she added one last complaint: "Damn your silver tongue!" she said with a smile.

Helena's right eyebrow lifted towards her hairline once again and her eyes danced in silent amusement. "In more ways than one, I would dare say."

Giving her silk-clad shoulder a gentle shove, Myka laughed. "There you go again! Stop it, or I'll find a way to ravish you again right now."

"As much as that idea delights me, I'm afraid I really must leave now."

Stealing one last kiss from Myka's soft lips, she was by the door in the next second, leaving the curly haired woman no time to deepen the kiss at all.

"Usually, I act with more mystery and vanish out the window, but I do believe it wiser to actually let your friends see me leave." She let out a long-suffering sigh, and then threw a wink in Myka's direction. "Until next time, my love. Stay safe."

And then she was gone, in a whirl of raven locks and a cool flurry of air.

Sighing, sad to see her go, Myka decided that she needed another cup of tea before going to sleep, not having gotten to enjoy her first one. Not that she was complaining about the sudden, pleasurable turn of events.

Hurriedly getting dressed in sweatpants and a t-shirt, she made her way down the stairs towards the kitchen, hoping against hope that the others were already retired to their own rooms for the night, and also hoping to catch another glimpse of Helena.

Of course, she had no such luck.

She had barely entered the kitchen, when Claudia and Pete, both of whom were looking a bit uncomfortable, ambushed her.

"Yes?" Myka asked, not taking her attention from the process of preparing her tea, her tone more snippy than she had intended.

"Uh...I...we...came to apologize," Claudia started, her nervousness making her stumble over the words.

"Oh? Whatever for?" The taller woman asked, an obvious amount of sarcasm coloring her voice.

"You know what for, Mykes," Pete said, arms crossed in defiance.

"Why don't you spell it out for me, _partner_?"

He groaned. "Mykes, c'mon."

She'd reached her limit of endurance of his childishness for now. Throwing her teaspoon onto the kitchen counter, she finally whirled around to face them, brunette curls flying wildly around her face.

"No, Pete, _you_ come on! What kind of apology is it, if you clearly have no concept of what it is you did wrong? When you clearly don't feel that you did anything wrong in the first place?" Myka gestured broadly at her two friends. "You know, usually, I appreciate your concern, but this concern becomes really irritating when it seeps from being truly worried to just being nosy. If you were so concerned about me, you could have just asked me if I was all right. But no, instead, you went snooping and put your nose where it didn't belong, and quite frankly, I am disappointed that you have no respect for my privacy!"

"Partners are also not supposed to keep secrets from each other," Pete shot back, still not giving up his view of things.

"Did you ever think of the fact that maybe I wanted to keep this to myself for a while longer, because I wasn't ready to share her with anyone yet? That I wanted to enjoy the feeling of simply being in love for a little bit longer, without having to endure judging glances and teasing comments?"

"We wouldn't have-" Pete protested.

"Don't, Pete. Don't lie to my face; I'm not that stupid. We all were present for that disastrous dinner, weren't we?" Myka sighed, rubbing her forehead for a moment to alleviate the impending headache. "Just, think about it, and we'll talk in the morning. I'm too tired to go through all of this again right now."

Grabbing her tea, she moved to return upstairs to her room, but was halted in the doorway by Claudia's voice. "I really am sorry I called H.G. like that. I know I shouldn't have and I am sorry for the trouble it caused you. Also," the girl paused for a second, nibbling on her thumbnail, clearly debating whether to say anything else or not. Then she grinned happily and flung herself into Myka's arms, mindful of the hot beverage in the older woman's hand. "Dude, I am so happy for you! H.G. Wells, man, you rock!"

Myka laughed, relieved. "I accept your apology, Claud. And, oh God, I know! At first I had so much trouble processing it, but then she became only Helena for me, really. And she's so much more than that!" Myka's whole face lit up.

Claudia looked up at her, a happy sparkle in her eyes. "Dude, you got it bad!"

"I know," she laughed.

The young techie stepped back, giving her a gentle push towards the stairs. "Go sleep, after the last few hours you certainly need it," she stated slyly.

Myka blushed and then hurriedly followed the advice.

Claudia watched the woman she considered a sister vanish up the stairs, then she turned towards Pete, who had been watching the scene, arms still crossed across his chest.

She gave him a disapproving look. "Dude, that is not how you apologize!"

"Don't start, Claud, I'm not in the mood."

"Well, duh," she answered, and then pushed her way passed him, leaving him to stew.

  
  


* * *

  
  


The next morning came much too early for the occupants of the B&B, all of whom where not quite ready to face the day just yet.

Bleary eyed and sleepy, one after the other stumbled down the stairs, where the only cheery person in the house greeted them. Leena was waiting for them with breakfast on the table, like most days, a smile on her face.

Myka was the last one to join them, dragging her feet while getting ready, dreading another confrontation with her friends. Eventually, though, she could not put off the inevitable any longer and slowly made her way into the dining room. Putting on her poker face, or trying to at least, she called out a "Good morning", before sitting down in her usual seat. They each returned the greeting before diving into their food, not wanting to let the still-warm pancakes go to waste.

After his first two, Pete finally got up the courage to look at her. "Mykes," he began, and Myka had a hard time trying not to wince, dreading what was coming next, "I'm sorry."

She blinked. That was not what she had been expecting, a softly spoken, honest apology. Emerald eyes glanced up at him, waiting for him to continue. He took a deep breath in preparation. "I spent a good portion of last night thinking about what you said, and I realize now that my behavior was wrong and rude. I should have talked to you about my suspicions and not gone snooping around in your proverbial underwear drawer. For what it's worth, I'm happy that you're happy, no matter who you're happy with. I hope you can forgive me for how uncool I've been about all this."

For a moment, Myka was stunned speechless. She didn't think she had ever heard Pete sounding so mature before, in all their time working together. Noticing the anxious look on his face, she gave him a small smile. "Just...don't do it again, alright?"

The anxious look melted off his face and turned into a grin. "You bet!"

And that was that. As much as Myka would love to hold a grudge at least for a day longer, she was just glad that the tension had been broken and everything seemed to go back to normal.

That was, until they heard the front door opening, alerting them that Artie had arrived to join them for breakfast.

Entering the room, he huffed a short "Morning" at them, in his usual don't-talk-to-me-before-my-first-cup-of-coffee way, and then proceeded to ignore them while filling his plate with a couple of pancakes and fresh fruit. Then he eagerly sipped at the coffee Leena had provided for him.

Another tense silence settled over the group, awaiting the inevitable outburst from their boss. He spent another few endless moments drinking his coffee and eating his food, before deeming himself awake enough to face them.

Looking around the table, his eyes finally settled on Myka's. "So you're still alive," he stated and Myka's eyebrows furrowed with the beginnings of annoyance. "Not sure how you managed to do that, but that's good. Good," he grumbled and took another sip of his coffee. Myka was tempted swat the cup out of his hands, but that would leave a mess on the lovely rug and she didn't want to take her anger essentially out on Leena. So instead, she took a deep breath and slowly breathed out again, letting the air escape in a quiet rush. Doing the mature thing. Her hands had clenched into fists in her lap, and she willed them to relax. Pushing her hair behind her ear to give her hands something to do, she then took a sip of her own coffee and ignored the grumpy man sharing the breakfast table with them.

The silence stretched between them, and it was becoming clearer by the second that Artie expected some kind of reply from her, making him even more irritated. She smiled inwardly that she had managed to retaliate, even if it was in such a small way. She counted it as a small victory.

Myka then saw the look on Artie's face and realized what exactly he was staring at and her inner victory dance came to a screeching halt.

"I know you are many things, Agent Bering, but I would never have suspected that being _stupid_ was one of those things."

"Now, hold on just a minute, Artie, man-" Pete started, aghast at the other man's words.

"Artie, what the frak?" Claudia also exclaimed, surprised at her mentor's words and even more surprised at the look of disgust on his face.

He glared at them and they fell silent, unsure about what to do. Then he turned his attention back towards Myka, pointing at her neck where two tiny marks where now clearly visible.

"Please, prove me right and tell me that that is not what I think it is."

"I wouldn't presume to know what you think, Artie." Myka said calmly.

"Oh, cut it out. Insolence does not look good on you."

"And who said that I always have to look good and be the good little girl that always does as she is told?" Myka fired back.

Artie's bushy eyebrows raised in confusion. "Is this what this is all about? Rebellion? Aren't you supposed to do that when you're around sixteen? No offense, but I'd say you're a little bit late for that."

"No! That is not what this is about! This is about you being ridiculous!"

"You are _way_ out of line, Agent Bering!"

"No, Agent Nielsen, you are! You have no right to judge my personal life, no more than anybody else does. You have no right to condemn the woman I love simply because of what she is, what she has become, due to the unimaginable pain she went through!" Myka stood, her agitation making her voice loud. "She was just like us, an agent of the Warehouse, fighting the good fight and then her daughter was ripped away from her. Helena did what any mother would do and tried everything in her power to bring her daughter back. None of us can imagine what it feels like to lose a child, so don't judge her for things you know nothing about! If you would just take the time to get to know her, you would learn that she is not like others of her kind which obviously have you so scared. Helena has never hurt me, and I know that she never would. These marks," she said, gently touching the twin marks Helena's teeth had left behind, "they prove that I trust her with my life, and all I ask is that you trust me." She took a deep breath and pushed back the tears that were threatening to burst free. "And if you can't do that, then I don't know if this is the right place for me. We are a team, and if you can't trust me, then neither of us will ever feel safe again in the field."

With these words, Myka pushed away from the table, needing to escape the room that seemed to become steadily smaller. Grabbing her keys and a jacket, she went to the one place she had always considered home.

She knew the Warehouse would not judge her.

 


	5. Chapter 5

The door to the umbilicus fell shut behind her with a resounding click and Myka breathed in the smell she associated with the Warehouse – old books, dusty artifacts, a hint of ozone from the constant static traveling through the enormous building, and the faint scent of apples. She had always wondered about that scent in particular, not quite knowing what to make of it. It did not seem to belong in a place like this.

Making her way over to the desk by the filing cabinet, which was still cluttered with paperwork nobody had deemed important enough to finish, she decided it was as good a place as any to take her mind off things. Dragging one of the chairs closer to the table, she started sorting the mess.

When next she resurfaced from her concentrated frame of mind, she glanced at her watch and noted that half an hour had passed. She knew that the others had to be arriving to begin their own work, and she was in no mood to meet Artie again so soon. Getting up, she moved out of the office and down the stairs to the Warehouse floor, starting to walk in a random direction.

Many minutes later, Myka decided it probably wasn't that random, and that she had developed a one-track mind. Shaking her head at herself, she looked at the sign that read ' _H.G. Wells Section_ ', and chuckled quietly. "See what you've done to me, Helena? If I didn't know you're a vampire, I'd be certain you're a witch," she mumbled to herself, moving forward and trailing her fingers along a crate, wanting to be as close to any part of Helena's spirit as possible. Looking around at the various treasures stacked up into dusty boxes, she picked one at random and went to sit down against a crate, stretching out her long legs before her. The box was neither too heavy, nor too big, so it fit nicely into her lap. Lifting the lid, she had to sneeze as some of the dust swiveled up into her face, disturbed by the motion. She blinked, once, twice, to clear her vision and set the lid aside, carelessly, eyes already seeking out the objects inside.

Her fingers eagerly, but still very careful, rifled around the old box. There were various papers, numbers and technical drawings hastily scrawled down on them, and Myka stared as pieces of Helena's brilliant mind came alive in front of her eyes. There were half finished manuscripts for novels (whose ideas had started out so promising, but had ultimately been abandoned), photographs of people Myka did not recognize, (of a stern looking man and woman, standing behind a little girl and a slightly older boy in what was obviously a family portrait). Emerald eyes squinted to make out the slightly faded faces. Turning the photograph over, she saw that a date had been noted on the backside. _1872_.

She gasped and hastily turned the picture back over again, concentrating on the little girl. She was staring into the camera with piercing black eyes, a mischievous twinkle hidden in their depth, and a happy smile on her lips. Her long dark hair had been braided into two thick braids, hanging over her shoulders and her hands were resting primly in her lap, but she still managed to convey the defiant air that was already gathering around her at this young age.

 _Helena_.

She was staring at a picture of a six-year old Helena.

Grinning in awe and excitement, Myka carefully laid the picture to the side and then went looking for more. She found another two pictures, one of Helena by herself, at what was probably around age twenty, her hair flowing free in the wind, dressed in trousers and a warm coat and holding the reigns of a beautiful black horse. Even in the black and white picture, she could see that Helena's cheeks were tinted a rosy hue, either from the cold wind or the excitement. Probably both. The other picture was of her, once again dressed as was expected of a woman of Helena's standing, in a dress, hair pulled back into a bun, her feet crossed at the ankles. She was sitting in a winged chair, with a little girl whose unruly dark locks reminded Myka of her own, resting in her lap. The girl appeared to be around four years old, and she had the same piercing look in her eyes that Helena had possessed in the first photo.

Myka swallowed hard, blinking back the sudden moisture clouding her eyes.

This had to be Helena's daughter, Christina. She could clearly see the resemblance between the two and the happiness in Helena's eyes almost broke her. It was hard to see her so happy, when she knew what the woman in the photograph never dared imagine was in her future. Carefully putting it with the other two pictures, Myka finished going through the rest of the box, enjoying reading short notes to novels she had first read when she was a child and seeing designs for inventions that maybe did get or did not get finished. She decided she would ask Helena about them one day.

Putting the lid back onto the box, mindful not to breathe too deeply while doing so, she got up and put it back where she had found it. Then she dusted off her pants and went back to pick up the photographs. She would see to it that Helena got them. They did not belong here, in the bottom of an unmarked box where no one would ever see them again.

Gently putting them in the inside pocket of her jacket, she made her way back to the office on the upper level of the Warehouse, now more ready than before her little excursion, to face her boss, with Helena's image pressed against her heart.

 

 

It turned out she need not have feared further confrontation with Artie. He was studiously ignoring her as best he could, only grunting instructions at her from time to time.

Several days passed like this and Myka was getting used to being treated like she was air. The others were all tiptoeing around Artie as well, mindful of his ever-changing mood, but at least they were back to normal where Myka was concerned.

They had just finished lunch, just a sandwich and a banana for each of them, thanks to Leena, and now the four of them were making their way back to the Warehouse floor, finishing their inventory chores for today. On the way back to the rows they had been working in last, Claudia tugged on Myka's shirt, asking for her attention.

"Have you spoken to H.G. in the last few days?"

"Yes, on the phone, why?"

The youngster shrugged. "Just curious, I guess."

Myka raised an eyebrow, looking at her skeptically.

"What, I can't be interested in my friend's relationship? I don't have a love-life, so I'm living vicariously through yours!"

The older woman laughed at that. "All right, fine. I talk to her every night before she goes to, uh, get dinner."

"Oh, how does that work anyways?" Pete piped up from behind her, and Myka half turned to him while walking, looking at him questioningly.

"What do you mean?"

"The...feeding thing. Does she go out and drag random people into dark alleyways or does she, you know, have donors or stuff?"

"You're not too far off with the donor idea. She once told me that in most major cities, you can find certain clubs, if you know where to look, that cater to the...underworld. There are a lot of people fascinated with the idea of the undead, as you know, or otherwise, vampire movies wouldn't be such a big hit. Anyway, it's easy enough to find willing participants. And most of them just think it's some kind of game, with no clue that she's actually the real thing." Myka paused and grinned at her friends. "So no, she does not drag unsuspecting people into dark and dirty alleyways to prey on their human blood and leave them for dead."

"I don't know about you guys, but that's certainly a relief." Steve laughed. "I guess I can stop eating those disgusting garlic pills now."

Myka laughed, too. "Don't worry, she wouldn't have any need to come looking for any of you. Let's just say I'm also a very willing participant." She smiled slightly.

"Wohoo, Mykes! I always knew you had a wild side!"

"Shut up, Pete," she mumbled, blushing, but not able to hide the pleased grin.

"Can I ask you something?" Claudia said, when the laughter had dissipated. They had reached the row they were doing inventory on by now, and paused to slip their hands back into their purple gloves.

"Sure, what is it, Claud?"

Her voice was quietly curious as she spoke. "What is it like? You know, being bitten?"

Myka fell silent and pondered how to best answer the question. Scratching her chin in thought, she took a moment to answer. "At first, there's this anticipation settling in your gut, the adrenaline in preparation for the pain you think you will feel any moment. Kind of like getting a tattoo, or a piercing, I guess? I obviously don't know if it's the same with other vampires, but Helena was so very careful and gentle; there was a short stabbing pain, like getting your blood drawn for a test, and then it felt like...like you were jumping into the snow outside after a long stay in the sauna. But that passed too, and then there was this amazing tingly feeling everywhere, like when you're about to, uh." The dazed look that had settled over her features was replaced by the beginnings of a blush. "You know," she finished quite shyly, her hands gesticulating wildly for a moment before dropping limply back to her sides.

Claudia grinned at her. "That sounds so awesome." Then her face fell. "Man, I want to try that, too." Lighting up again, she looked at Myka with big eyes. "Do you think you'll let H.G. bite me? Just once?"

"Uh...I'll have to think about that for a bit, okay Claud?" Myka stammered, unsure how she should feel about that idea.

"Sure!" The redhead agreed easily, skipping over to her part of the row to continue with her inventory.

Myka looked after her, a little bit stunned. Pete and Steve walked passed her to return to their previous posts, and the former clapped her on the shoulder, laughing. "Don't worry, Mykes, I don't think she's trying to steal your girlfriend."

Myka just stuck out her tongue at him, and then went back to her own work.

The rest of the day passed quite quickly, the conversation between them flowing easily while they were working, and making dinnertime arrive faster.

"Holy crap, I'm starving!" Claudia exclaimed, once they were climbing the stairs back up to the office again. Filtering through the door, they saw Artie sitting at his desk, typing away at the computer. "Boss man, you comin'?" The youngest member of their team asked.

Pushing his glasses back up his nose, he seemed indecisive for a moment before nodding. "I guess I could eat something," he stated and grabbed his bag and jacket, before making his way to the door, suddenly appearing to be in a hurry.

They all followed after him through the umbilicus and, once outside, climbed into the two cars parked outside.

The ride to the B&B was spent mostly in silence, each too hungry to find the energy to strike up a conversation.

The old building loomed in the distance, visible between the trees surrounding it, the lights in the windows leading their way home.  
The view pulled a smile onto Myka's lips.

Making their way through the door, they each divested themselves of their jackets, before calling out a greeting for Leena, whose voice answered them from the living room, instead of the kitchen, where she usually could be found this time of the evening.

"In here! Myka, why don't you come here for a moment?"

Looking at the others in confusion, she followed the request, as did the others.

Then she was pulled up short, when she spotted a second figure sitting on the couch, opposite Leena.

"Helena!" Myka exclaimed, hurriedly making her way towards the other woman. Helena got to her feet and readily let herself be pulled into a tight hug, returning it with one arm. The other remained loosely by her side.

Stepping away from the vampire, Myka frowned at her, throwing a worried glance towards her left arm. "Are you alright? What happened to your arm? Are you hurt?"

"No need for you to worry, darling. It will be healed in a few days time." Helena assured her, but it did little to alleviate Myka's concern.

"What will be healed? What happened?" She exclaimed, carefully pushing away the neck of her blouse, trying to get a glimpse of a possible wound.

"It appears I am not made out to be noble." She shrugged, nonchalant.

"Helena?" Myka's voice became more worried by the second. "Please, just tell me what happened!"

"I was shot darling."

"What?!" Myka's voice was not the only one yelling out in surprise; so did Claudia.

The hairs on the brunette's neck rose, when she heard Artie chuckle darkly. "I guess that can be expected when you try to rip somebody's throat out."

Helena's uninjured arm shot out to hold Myka back before the other woman could so much as take a step towards the man, intent on strangling him. She just raised her eyebrow, almost haughtily, and coolly replied, "No, actually. It appears that somebody was in dire need of some money and decided to rob a bank. Of course it had to be the institution where I was trying to see to some of my monetary matters. The man was understandably quite nervous and when the police arrived outside, he accidentally fired his weapon."

"But...couldn't you have easily stepped out of the way in time?"

"He was not firing at me, Mr. Lattimer."

"Huh?"

Helena sighed, having hoped that she would not have had to go into the details. "The bullet would have hit the young mother of two standing a few feet to my left."

"So...you _stepped in front of the bullet_?"

"It would seem so, yes."

"Holy cow."

"Helena!" Myka's voice pulling her attention back to the other woman. "Is...you went to see a doctor, didn't you?"

"Why would I do that, darling?"

"Because you've been _shot_!"

"Indeed. It was also not the fist time. Don't worry, darling, I managed to remove the bullet quite easily. As I said, it should be healed in a few days."

"You dug the bullet out yourself? Dude, you are badass!" Claudia exclaimed.

Helena raised a questioning eyebrow at Myka and asked under her breath, "Is that a good thing?"

Myka smiled, her eyes having a watery shimmer to them. "Yes."

"Well, in that case, thank you, Ms. Donovan."

"Are you sure you're alright?" Myka asked again, worried.

Helena turned back towards Myka and smiled softly at her. Lovingly cupping her cheek in her good hand, she nodded, "I'm sure, love. Please, do not worry about me. No bullet can so easily kill me." She then pressed a short and chaste kiss to Myka's lips. "Now forget about those tears and put a smile on for me. I do love to see you smile, my Myka."

The curly haired woman gave a watery chuckle and a small smile involuntarily appeared on her lovely face.

"Now, that's more like it!" Helena beamed, then smoothed out imaginary wrinkles in her pants, looking at the others. "Well, I did not want to disturb your dinner plans." Addressing Myka again, she added, "I simply wanted to catch a quick glimpse of your face."

Behind them, Artie cleared his throat, clearly more than a little uncomfortable. "Why, uh, why don't you stay? For, uh, dinner. As, you know, company."

Every pair of eyebrows in the room rose to it's owner's hairline, incredulity written over their faces, unsure if they'd heard right.

"What?" Myka asked, wanting to make sure her ears had not deceived her.

"Well," he scratched his neck, embarrassed, "you're obviously concerned for her well-being, and her just vanishing off into the night would probably do nothing to alleviate your concern, so why doesn't, um, doesn't H.G. stay a while longer?" Glancing at her, Artie willed her to accept his silent peace offering.

Myka shot him a look that said ' _I appreciate you finally coming to your senses, but this is not over yet'_ and then nodded, turning questioning eyes towards Helena. "Can you stay for a bit?"

The raven-haired woman smiled at her, red-black eyes piercing in the warm lamplight illuminating the room. "I would love to." Then, nodding at Artie, "Thank you for the invitation, Agent Nielsen."

He just grunted in reply and then hastily left the room under the guise of freshening up for dinner.

"Well, that was new." Steve stated, surprise still visible on his features.

"Tell me about it," Myka replied, grabbing Helena's good hand, wanting to make sure that she was really there and would not suddenly disappear before her eyes.

They collectively moved to the dining area where Myka quickly pulled another chair towards the table, inviting Helena to sit. She took a seat next to her, smiling, happy to spend some time with her.

Leena moved to pull another set of dishes from the cupboard, but was stopped by the vampire's smooth voice. "Thank you, dear, but those won't be necessary. I'm simply here to enjoy all of your company, and not your food," she joked lightly. Leena took it in stride and just put the plate and cutlery back where they belonged.

Minutes later, they were all sitting at the table, enjoying their food, while managing the have a lively conversation, in which even Artie joined in. Claudia took the opportunity to play twenty questions, getting Helena to regale them with tales of a time long past: of her work with Warehouse 12, the artifacts she had managed to snag and those she was still looking for. However, despite Claudia hinting at it several times, Helena did not budge and stayed silent about the events surrounding her turning, instead directing the conversation easily back towards more neutral topics.

Much later, after stomachs were filled and the first yawns were suppressed, Helena rose to leave.

"Thank you so much for your company this evening, I quite enjoyed it."

"You are welcome here anytime," Leena assured her with a smile and Helena smiled back, thankful.

"Have a good night, everybody. Myka, would you be so kind and accompany me outside for just a moment?"

"Of course!" she agreed quickly, following after her lover into the hallway, where she grabbed her jacket to ward off the evening chill outside. Then she helped Helena into her coat, to which she received a sweet smile, making her insides flutter gently.

Once she had pulled the door closed behind them, Myka stepped closer towards the other woman, wrapping her arms around a slim waist.

"Thank you for dropping by," she murmured, "and letting me know you're alright." Dropping a kiss to the smaller woman's forehead, her lips whispering over the skin, she added, "I'm so glad you're alright, Helena."

The vampire tangled her fingers into the hair at the base of the agent's neck, before leaning back slightly to make eye contact with her. "Really, love, it would take a lot more to get rid of me for good. You need not worry so much. That is my prerogative."

Furrowing her brows, she asked, "What do you mean?"

"You are much more fragile, in your human body. I had almost forgotten what it was like to be human, having spent so much time in the darkness. But then you appeared, almost out of nowhere, reminding me what it is like to feel. To know empathy and concern. Love. I worry about you, my Myka, constantly haunted by your own mortality. Even though your spirit is as strong as any I have ever encountered, your body is still-"

"Weak?"

"Compared to mine, yes." Helena admitted, tilting her head in thought.

"Then change it."

"I'm sorry?"

"Change my weakness, and turn it into a strength."

Helena's eyes widened when she realized what Myka was talking about. Her hands tightened on Myka's body in response.

"Please, love. You don't know what you are talking about. Don't ask that of me, I beg you."

"But why?" she wondered, confused at the adamant refusal.

"Because turning you into something like me would simply be for selfish reasons, and not out of love for you. I would like nothing more than to have you by my side forever, but I could not condemn you to a life like mine." Seeing that Myka still had trouble understanding her reasoning, she tried to explain. "You are filled with light, with goodness, with happiness and a love for life. Turning you would take all of those things away from you and you would cease to be the Myka I hold so dear to my undead heart. Please, Myka. Do not ask of me to kill you."

Taking a shuddering breath, Myka pulled her even closer, pressing a kiss to her cool lips. For once, their skin was almost the same temperature, due to the chill in the air. "I'm sorry. I had no idea you felt so negatively about this. But Helena?" she smiled, looking deeply into the eyes she had come to love so much, gently caressing her cheek, "All those things you think I am? You are those things too. You are good, and brave, and noble, and even if your heart is not beating anymore, it is still filled with more compassion than most people possess. Trust me, I know."

"How? How can you be so sure?"

"Because I know what some people will do for power and money. And I know you." Kissing her again, almost reverently, she whispered, "And I love who you are, and I would not want to change you for the world."

Helena's eyes flamed even redder than usual, and the thin sheen of tears filling her eyes almost made them appear like melting lava. Myka watched, fascinated.

"Thank you, my darling."

She just managed to nod, not wanting to take her eyes off the stunning woman in front of her.

It wasn't until she remembered something important that she blinked. "Oh!" She began rifling through the pockets of her jacket, as she hurriedly explained, "I've got something for you. I found it in the Warehouse a couple of days ago." Pulling out the small stack of old photographs, she gently handed them to Helena. "I thought you would like them back."

With slightly trembling hands, the raven-haired beauty took the old paper from Myka, carefully tracing the pads of her fingers over long-since faded faces. "Oh, my. I...Myka," blinking against the tears, Helena tore her eyes away from the face of her daughter for a moment to look deeply at the taller woman before her. "Thank you," she whispered, her voice cracking softly.

Myka smiled, relieved that Helena appreciated the gesture. "You're welcome." Pointing at the young girl in the photograph, she asked softly, "Maybe you will tell me about her someday?"

"Yes. I believe I would like that. I haven't talked about her in so long, not really, that it would be nice to share her memory with someone. I would appreciate it if that someone was you." A smile flitted over her lips. "You would have loved her, my Christina. In many ways you remind me of her. You share the same light, you know?"

"Really?"

Helena nodded, her eyes involuntarily locking onto her daughter's face again. "She had the same love for life that you have. The same stubborn streak and a similar temper. She was also fiercely intelligent."

"She sounds exactly like you."

Helena laughed softly, the sound not unlike the sound of wind chimes swaying softly in the breeze. "It would appear you and I are not that different, either, then."

"Can you imagine Pete's face when he's spend more time with both of us?" The agent chuckled, "Two Mykas, he'll be ecstatic."

Helena smirked slightly, the smirk that Myka realized she found very attractive. "I'll be looking forward to putting that theory to the test. But for now, I must bid you adieu." Pressing a kiss to her soft lips, the vampire allowed her tongue to tangled briefly with Myka's, pulling a moan from the taller woman. Breaking the kiss after a moment or two, she stepped back, giving Myka's hand a gentle squeeze in farewell. "Good night, my Myka. Sweet dreams."

"Good night, Helena," she called after her retreating figure quietly. She stood there on the silent porch long after the night had swallowed the vampire's form, a smile curving her lips.

She was pulled from her thoughts when the door behind her opened, and Artie stepped onto the porch with her, bag in hand and ready to head back to the Warehouse for the night, where his bed was waiting for him.

"Ah, Myka." He froze, apparently surprised to still find her here, his eyes shifting around, searching.

"She's gone." Myka assured him, only a minimal hint of annoyance in her tone.

"Ah, eh, yes. Well, then. Good night."

He had barely taken three steps when Myka's voice pulled him up short.

"Artie, why did you change your mind?"

He stiffened, not quite turning around to face her. "W-What do you mean?"

Myka rolled her eyes. "Helena. You invited her to stay, after you accused her of getting shot while stalking her next victim. So why did you change your mind?"

Artie was silent for a long moment, and then he heaved a heavy sigh. "When I went to 'freshen up'," he actually used his fingers to put quotes in the air, "I actually did some research on that bank robbery. I...wanted to make sure she was telling the truth, I guess. It, uh, it appears she acted quite heroically, according to several eyewitnesses. After that I decided to give her a chance." He cleared his throat and then hastily added, "If only to prevent my best agent from leaving. Do you think I enjoy having to work in a new recruit? It's so tedious."

One side of Myka's lips curled into a small smile. "Good night, Artie," was all she said, and Artie took the opportunity to flee.

"Uh, yes. Yes, good night."

Then he jumped into his car and a moment later, Myka watched the taillights vanish into the darkness.

Well, Myka thought, it appeared miracles did indeed happen.

Humming quietly to herself, she went back inside, eager to start the next day.

Suddenly, she could not wait for the future. It was brimming with possibilities.

  
  


  
  


_The End_

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is it....
> 
> Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed the journey :)


End file.
